Photoresist compositions are used in microlithography processes for making miniaturized electronic components such as in the fabrication of computer chips and integrated circuits. Generally, in these processes, a thin coating of a film of a photoresist composition is first applied to a substrate material, such as silicon wafers used for making integrated circuits. The coated substrate is then baked to evaporate any solvent in the photoresist composition and to fix the coating onto the substrate. The baked and coated surface of the substrate is next subjected to an image-wise exposure to radiation.
This radiation exposure causes a chemical transformation in the exposed areas of the coated surface. Visible light, ultraviolet (UV) light, electron beam and X-ray radiant energy are radiation types commonly used today in microlithographic processes. After this image-wise exposure, the coated substrate is treated with a developer solution to dissolve and remove either the radiation-exposed or the unexposed areas of the photoresist. There are two types of photoresist compositions, negative-working and positive-working. When positive-working photoresist compositions are exposed image-wise to radiation, the areas of the photoresist composition exposed to the radiation become soluble in a developer solution while the unexposed areas of the photoresist coating remain relatively insoluble to such a solution. Thus, treatment of an exposed positive-working photoresist with a developer causes removal of the exposed areas of the photoresist coating and the formation of a positive image in the coating, thereby uncovering a desired portion of the underlying substrate surface on which the photoresist composition was deposited. In a negative-working photoresist the developer removes the portions that are not exposed.
The trend towards the miniaturization of semiconductor devices has led both to the use of new photoresists that are sensitive to lower and lower wavelengths of radiation, and also to the use of sophisticated multilevel systems to overcome difficulties associated with such miniaturization.
High resolution, chemically amplified, deep ultraviolet (100-300 nm) positive and negative tone photoresists are available for patterning images with less than quarter micron geometries. There are two major deep ultraviolet (uv) exposure technologies that have provided significant advancement in miniaturization, and these are lasers that emit radiation at 248 nm and 193 nm. Examples of such photoresists are given in the following patents and incorporated herein by reference, U.S. Pat. No. 4,491,628, U.S. Pat. No. 5,350,660, EP 794458 and GB 2320718. Photoresists for 248 nm have typically been based on substituted polyhydroxystyrene and its copolymers. On the other hand, photoresists for 193 nm exposure require non-aromatic polymers, since aromatics are opaque at this wavelength. Generally, alicyclic hydrocarbons are incorporated into the polymer to replace the etch resistance lost by eliminating the aromatic functionality. Furthermore, at lower wavelengths the reflection from the substrate becomes increasingly detrimental to the lithographic performance of the photoresist. Therefore, at these wavelengths antireflective coatings become critical.
The use of highly absorbing antireflective coatings in photolithography is a simpler approach to diminish the problems that result from back reflection of light from highly reflective substrates. The bottom antireflective coating is applied on the substrate and then a layer of photoresist is applied on top of the antireflective coating. The photoresist is exposed imagewise and developed. The antireflective coating in the exposed area is then typically etched and the photoresist pattern is thus transferred to the substrate. Most antireflective coatings known in the prior art are designed to be dry etched. The etch rate of the antireflective film needs to be relatively high in comparison to the photoresist so that the antireflective film is etched without excessive loss of the resist film during the etch process. There are two known types of antireflective coatings, inorganic coatings and organic coatings. However, both of these types of coatings have so far been designed for removal by dry etching.
In addition, photoresist patterns may be damaged or may not be transferred exactly to the substrate if the dry etch rate of the antireflective coating is similar to or less than the etch rate of the photoresist coated on top of the antireflective coating. The etching conditions for removing the organic coatings can also damage the substrate. Thus, there is a need for organic bottom antireflective coatings that do not need to be dry etched and can also provide good lithographic performance, especially for compound semiconductor type substrates, which are sensitive to etch damage.
The novel approach of the present application is to use an absorbing, positive image-forming bottom antireflective coating that can be developed by an aqueous alkaline solution, rather than be removed by dry etching. Aqueous removal of the bottom antireflective coating eliminates the dry etch rate requirement of the coating, reduces the cost intensive dry etching processing steps and also prevents damage to the substrate caused by dry etching. The absorbing bottom antireflective coating compositions of the present invention contain a crosslinking compound and a polymer. The coating is cured and then upon exposure to light of the same wavelength as that used to expose the top positive photoresist become imageable in the same developer as that used to develop the photoresist. This process greatly simplifies the lithographic process by eliminating a large number of processing steps. Since the antireflective coating is photosensitive, the extent of removal of the antireflective coating is defined by the latent optical image, which allows a good delineation of the remaining photoresist image in the antireflective coating.
Bilevel photoresists are known, as in U.S. Pat. No. 4,863,827, but require exposure of two different wavelengths for the top and bottom photoresists, which complicates the processing of the lithography.
There are many patents that disclose antireflective coating compositions but these coatings are all cured to be insoluble in an aqueous developer solution and must be removed by dry etching. U.S. Pat. No. 5,939,236 describes an antireflective coating containing a polymer, an acid or thermal acid generator, and a photoacid generator. However this film is completely crosslinked to make it insoluble in an alkaline aqueous developer solution. The film is removed by a plasma gas etch. Examples of other antireflective coating patents are U.S. Pat. No. 5,886,102, U.S. Pat. No. 6,080,530 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,251,562.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,910,122 discloses an aqueous developable antireflective coating, however the degree of solubility of the total film is controlled by the bake conditions. This antireflective coating is not photoimageable, and therefore, there are no clearly defined soluble and insoluble regions in the film. The dissolution of the antireflective coating is controlled by bake conditions and thus the antireflective coating is very sensitive to the developer normality and developing time, and also gives poor resolution. High normality developer and/or long develop times can cause excessive removal of the antireflective coating.
Another process for imaging photoresists using antireflective coatings is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,635,333; however, the antireflective coating is not developed at the same time as the photoresist.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,882,996 describes a method of patterning dual damascene interconnections where a developer soluble antireflective coating interstitial layer is used. The antireflective coating is formed between two photoresist layers and has a preferred thickness of 300-700 angstroms, refractive index of 1.4-2.0 and is water soluble. The antireflective coating is not photoimageable and there is no description of the chemistry of the antireflective coating.
Acid sensitive antireflective coatings using differing chemistries are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,110,653, U.S. Pat. No. 6,319,651, U.S. Pat. No. 6,054,254 and US 2004/0018451.
The novel antireflective composition of the present invention relates to a photoimageable, aqueous alkali developable, positive-working antireflective coating. The antireflective coating composition of the instant invention is coated on a substrate before applying a positive photoresist layer, in order to prevent reflections in the photoresist from the substrate. The solid components of the antireflective coating are soluble in common photoresist solvents and capable of forming a coating, and furthermore are compatible with edge-bead remover solvents. Edge-bead remover solvents are used to remove the build-up on the edges of the antireflective coating formed during the spin coating process. This antireflective coating is photoimageable at the same wavelength of actinic radiation as the top photoresist layer applied thereupon, and is also developable with the same aqueous alkaline developing solution as that used for typically developing a photoresist. The combination of single exposure step and single development step greatly simplifies the lithographic process. Furthermore, an aqueous developable antireflective coating is especially desirable for imaging with photoresists that do not contain aromatic functionalities, such as those used for 193 nm and 157 nm exposures. The novel composition enables a good image transfer from the photoresist to the substrate, and also has good absorption characteristics to prevent reflective notching and line width variations or standing waves in the photoresist. Additionally, substantially no intermixing is present between the antireflective coating and the photoresist film. The antireflective coatings also have good solution stability and form thin films with good coating quality, the latter being particularly advantageous for lithography. When the antireflective coating is used with a photoresist in the imaging process, clean images are obtained, without damaging the substrate.